450 



RECREATION. 



were the principal subject of contention, a dozen 

 or more suggestions were made for their protec- 

 tion, and not a meeting was held without a dis- 

 cussion of the subject of quails. This was true, 

 too, when the bill was before the House and the 

 Senate, and the most important amendments to the 

 bill submitted had to do with the extent of the 

 open season for quails. 



It is not possible to trace the responsibility for 

 the omission of quails and woodcocks from the 

 body pf the bill, for there appears to have been 

 no change made in the draft of the measure after 

 it left the joint fish and game committee. Neither 

 is it possible to say whether the omission was by 

 design. The fact that several States have recently 

 forbidden the killing of quails for a number of 

 years makes it probable that quail hunting will 

 be profitable in this State if it is unrestricted; 

 but it is difficult to conceive of legislative skul- 

 duggery in the interest of pot hunters. It is prob- 

 able, therefore, that the quails lost their legal pro- 

 tection through an honest error. The fact that 

 quails will be unprotected will create consternation 

 among the sportsmen of the State, for 2 years of 

 indiscriminate and unhampered quail killing will 

 exterminate the bird in Illinois. After the first 

 day of July, when the new law goes into effect 

 quails can be killed at any and all times and the 

 slaughter of the birds is certain to be great. — The 

 Packer. 



GAME ALONG THE GREAT NORTHERN. 



On the way here I saw 3 big wolves along 

 the track of the Great Northern railroad, 

 just before entering the mountains. I also 

 saw numerous flocks of pinnated grouse and 

 sage hens. There are ducks on all the 

 ponds, and on the open prairie I saw a 

 big porcupine doing his best at a hundred 

 yards dash. He traveled in undulating 

 bounds. I noticed game laws and forest 

 fire warnings tacked up in conspicuous 

 places all through this section of country. 

 The notices are printed on cloth and nailed 

 to trees in the midst of forests ; on fences 

 and telegraph poles on the prairies. It 

 would be a good idea for the authorities 

 to adopt in our Eastern States. The game 

 laws here are somewhat respected. There 

 are sheep on the East side of the moun- 

 tains, within a few miles of the lake, and 

 goats on the West side of the lake. A 

 party of men and women climbing the 

 mountain a day or 2 ago put up quite a 

 herd of goats and a band of 30 moose with- 

 in 2 days' journey over the mountain trail. 

 Silvertips, black bears and mountain lions 

 are plentiful. There are several varieties of 

 trout in the lake and streams. They take 

 bait, fly and spoon. This is a grand 

 country. Get off at Belton, Great North- 

 ern railroad, drive through a beautiful pri- 

 meval forest to the lake, take steam launch 

 to camp and hotel. There is snow on the 

 mountain tops and several glaciers are ac- 

 cessible. It is 7 miles to the nearest one. 

 Dan Beard, Belton, Mont. 



then I lose my guess. No doubt the men 

 had a ferret with them, but I hey did not 

 have a chance to use it. It was also a 

 fool with a gun, as lie threw it down 

 cocked. The rabbit did a good job. What 

 do you think of it? 



Alfred C. Fox, Chicago, 111. 



At Parkersburg, W. Va., Fred Fries, a boy of 

 15; his father, Peter Fries, and Chris Riech, 

 went out for a hunt. They walked a mile or 2 

 into the woods, when a rabbit was started. The 

 dog stayed between the hunters and the rabbit 

 till the rabbit's burrow was reached. The boy 

 reached the burrow first, threw his gun, which 

 was cocked, on the ground, and, securing a long 

 pole, began punching into the hole where the 

 rabbit had disappeared. The rabbit, tiring of his 

 trying position, leaped from the hole so suddenly 

 as to startle the boy and confuse the dog. The 

 first bound landed the rabbit's foot on the trig- 

 ger of the gun. The force was sufficient to 

 discharge the gun, and the load of shot entered 

 young Fred Fries's left thigh. The range was 

 short, and the shot went into the boy in a 

 bunch, making a wound that required a bandage 

 to prevent death from hemorrhage. 



Fries may consider himself mighty lucky 

 that the shot did not cost him a leg or 

 even his life. He will have sense enough 

 next time to let down the hammers of his 

 gun before he throws it on the ground. — 

 Editor. 



SERVED HIM RIGHT. 



Enclosed you will find a little lesson to 

 print in Recreation for the use of game 

 hogs. If the rabbit had not earned his 

 freedom when he entered his little abode, 



TWO MOOSE IN ONE MORNING. 

 Last fall, my 2 brothers, our friend 

 Mr. S. and I, went on a hunting trip in 

 Nova Scotia. Arrived there, we met our 

 old friend, the Indian guide, and were soon 

 in the woods. Our first camp was on the 

 shore of a large lake. Next morning we 

 were up at 5 and paddled to a bay at the 

 head of the lake, where we waited un- 

 der cover about 10 minutes. Suddenly 

 there was a cracking of branches and a 

 large bull moose, followed by a cow with 

 a calf, came to the water's edge. As the 

 wind was blowing from them to us they 

 did not wind us. They were 200 yards 

 away, but coming closer every moment. We 

 waited until they approached within 50 

 yards and the bull halted. At that moment 

 my eldest brother fired. The bull started 

 away like an arrow, but soon fell, the 

 wound being a mortal one. He was hauled 

 into the guide's canoe and we went on up 

 a small creek. Soon we noticed tracks on 

 the shore, and farther on saw a moose 

 retreating into the forest. We went ashore 

 and trailed him. Presently we came on a 

 young bull. I fired and hit him squarely 

 in the chest. He went on his knees and a 

 moment later rolled over. We hauled him 

 back to the canoes, and, having loaded him 

 on one of them, started back to our camp. 



J. S. Martin, 

 Jersey City, N. J. 



YUKON TO PROTECT ITS GAME. 

 Being a great lover of outdoor sport I 

 admire your magazine very much. You 



